EENAT

Project EENAT (the Eastern European Network on Access Technology) is an initiative, started by the Overbrook International Program, in 1996, to expand open education and employment opportunities for blind and low vision persons in Hungary , Lithuania , Poland , the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic through the promotion of expanded use of access technology in schools and the workplace. Later the project was expanded to include Romania , Estonia and Latvia .

In addition to the support provided by Overbrook, the project received support for several years from the Open Society Institute (Soros Foundation) and later from the John Milton Society for the Blind.

Between 1996 and 2002 Project EENAT carried out many activities at both a national and regional level to help both government and non-government organizations to understand and use the power of new developments in information technology.

Project EENAT conducted many training-of-trainer courses locally, at the sub-regional level and also course that involved trainers from all eight participating countries.

EENAT also produced a publication series that included:

“Yes, I Can”! : Profiles of persons with visual impairment working in open market employment. (1999)

“Yes, They Can!” : A training manual to prepare parents and educators of blind and visually impaired individuals in the field of access technology (2000)

“Yes, We Can!”: A public education video that follows three individuals (a primary school student, a university student and a businessman through a typical day and demonstrates how access technology assists them in their education or employment.

EENAT Today :

As a result of the work of Project EENAT, a number of European Union projects and most importantly through the networking and hard work of many EENAT project partners the use of access technology has been greatly expanded and many of the countries involved with Project EENAT are now leaders in the field of access technology in Europe .

Today, Project EENAT is phasing out its work in Eastern Europe but is still active with the Baltic countries of Estonia , Lativa and Lithuania . EENAT's work in the Baltics is coordinated by Vitas Purlys, Director of the Computer Center for the Blind in Vilnius , Lithuania where current projects include:

-development of new teaching materials for use with Intellikeys

-leadership and entrepreneurial training of blind youth and

-development of a multi-language keyboard training software.

For further information on the work of Project EENAT in the Baltics you may contact:

Mr. Vitas Purlys, EENAT Baltics Project Coordinator
Educational Center for the Blind
E-Mail: <VITAS@LASS.LT>

or:

Larry Campbell, Project Director
Overbrook International Program
E-Mail: LARRY@OBS.ORG